Wynn Macau Sets Benchmark For Integrated Security Systems

Wynn Macau establishes new standards of excellence in gaming and entertainment  and technology as well. The challenge of providing a safe and secure environment for patrons and employees is compounded by the sheer size and scope of the facility.

Building a facility like Wynn Macau carries a hefty price tag  estimates reach as high as US$1.2 billion  which buys a lot of amenities including 600 deluxe hotel rooms and suites, plus 220 table games and 380 slot machines architecturally blended into 100,000 square feet of casino gaming space. The Wynn Macau also boasts several restaurants, a full spa, salon, entertainment lounges and meeting facilities, plus 26,000 square feet of retail space.

¨As with the advanced video and security system installed at our Las Vegas property, we set out to install a comprehensive solution that provides integrated capabilities to assure efficiency and performance,〃 said Peter Wilson, Director of Surveillance at Wynn Macau.

The primary challenge was the physical location of the facility relative to operations and security measures. ¨We designed a security solution that allows us to correlate point of sale (PoS) data with video of transactions so we can easily monitor, match and track transactions in the food and beverage areas,〃 Wilson said.

Macau gaming practices differ from that of the United States. In Macau, gaming tables have up to nine positions that result in back-betting up to three deep and as many as 27 bets being placed simultaneously on a single table. This practice presented its own set of issues and challenges when configuring the video surveillance system.

Implementing System Integration

North American Video selected Honeywell's video/ audio matrix switcher to accommodate and control the thousands of cameras slated for the system and various integrated security and related systems. The system is expandable to accommodate up to 9,999 video inputs and 512 video outputs making it ideal for Wynn Macau's massive camera deployment and planned expansion. The matrix switcher provides direct interface via the HLI to Honeywell's touch screen keyboard/controller.

Approaching 4,000 cameras  including approximately 1,800 cameras currently being integrated for Wynn Macau's expansion project which is near completion  are recorded digitally at varying frame rates depending on their coverage assignments. The digital recording system allows more than 30 users to simultaneously view, record, playback, interrogate and archive recorded material, along with automatic fail-over redundancy and diagnostics. The security solution at Wynn Macau resides on a dedicated network. The network configuration provides remote monitoring and access to the video surveillance and security system for Wynn Macau executives who have been granted access, the police department and gaming regulators via remote connections. The remote access capability also serves to provide digital recording redundancy at virtually any location in the event of an emergency.

Wynn Macau's monitor room features more than a hundred displays and dozens of workstations, plus Ultrakey Controllers and custom consoles provided by Winstead. North American Video developed a unique video routing system to provide Wynn Macau's surveillance/ security personnel with the ability to call up any live or recorded video stream on any display, without processing delays and selection conflicts. According to Cynthia Freschi, President of North American Video, the unique solution will be used as a model for future system deployments at facilities with large numbers of cameras to manage and similar viewing requirements.

¨Integration with PoS applications for retail, and food and beverage outlets was a high priority,〃 Freschi said. ¨The Honeywell Integrated Data Manager (IDM) solution we implemented allows Wynn Macau's surveillance staff to immediately search the PoS database using virtually any parameter and call up the video that matches the incident. They can also program 'alarm' activities based on established policies and instantly monitor and recall transactions. This highly sophisticated server-based solution allows us to network and integrate via the network hundreds of points of interest. It's a powerful solution that provides efficiencies on many different platforms.〃

Wiring and Networking

All of the cameras in Wynn Macau are networked with multicamera power supplies specially designed for North American Video by Altronix. Coaxial and/or copper cabling from the field devices terminate to custom racks and/or NEMA enclosures prefabricated to include the system's multicamera power supplies, universal twisted pair devices, data distribution, alarm panels and associated equipment. From these telecommunications rooms, a backbone consisting of hundreds of pairs of Cat 5 Ethernet cables, along with a few strands of fiber, are run back to the command center where the cabling is punched down and/or terminated to the matrix switch and other control devices.

With this solution, North American Video has the flexibility to relocate cameras if necessary, without the need to move conduit. ¨This was a significant design consideration, since it allows us to easily accommodate changes in camera placement by simply changing the camera assignment at the punch downs in the control rooms,〃 Freschi said.

For more information, please visit the company's Web site at www.navcctv.com.